Volume 1, Issue 4 | May 2021

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In the April 2021 issue, we reported on recent technology-driven disruptive activities taking place within hearing care.

In this month's issue, we look at the paradigm shift towards professional service delivery, and how this shift enhances the profession's value proposition.
Medicare Audiologist Access and
Services Act (MAASA)
MAASA is bipartisan supported legislation introduced to Congress on World Hearing Day (March 3, 2021) as a joint initiative by the professional organizations ADA, AAA, and ASHA. The legislation, when passed, will allow for:

  1. Reclassification of Audiologists to Practitioner Status within Medicare - Allows audiologists the autonomy to practice within the full scope of their state license and competencies, including the ability to deliver services via telehealth in the time of public health emergencies such as COVID-19;
  2. Medicare Direct Access - Eliminates the need for a physician directive for a Medicare beneficiary to receive comprehensive coverage of medically necessary services such as cerumen removal and audiological rehabilitation

The passage of legislation does not:

  • Change, expand and/or enhance the scope of practice outlined in any state audiology licensure law.
  • Change the practitioner status to a limited license physician at the state level.
  • Allow for prescriptive rights.
  • Allow for ordering rights.
  • Include a provision for hearing aid coverage by Medicare.

Additional information on MAASA can be found at:
Interventional Audiology
Interventional audiology is not centered on the dispensing of a hearing aid or medical device. Instead, interventional audiology is a preventative-driven approach to health care in which audiologists' partner with other health care professionals in co-assessing and co-managing the disease state of hearing loss and its association to other medical conditions (e.g., cognitive decline, diabetes, cardiovascular, depression).

According to Taylor & Tysoe (2013), "These interconnected [professional] networks may be more critical to your success than effective business management principles or the latest hearing aid technology that you offer in your clinic."
Functional and Communication
Needs Assessment (F&CNA)
F&CNA is a contemporary, in-depth screening approach to patient evaluation and care based on the provider practicing to the full scope of their state licensure law. The F&CNA screens the patient's audiological and vestibular abilities and provides the patient with a comprehensive hearing care treatment plan. The plan of care is not dependent on a recommendation for hearing aids, but does depend on appropriate recommendations for all concerns noted by the patient and outcomes from the procedures.

The value for this appointment is in the patient-centered care it provides the patient with respect to selecting their treatment path with an audiologist, another provider, or both.
Better Hearing and Speech Month
Fun Facts:
  • In 2021, the Better Hearing and Speech Month awareness campaign celebrates its 94th year of promoting healthy hearing and sharing the issues faced by those with hearing loss
  • President Ronald Reagan, who had hearing loss and was the first US president to be fitted with hearing aids while in office, authorized a congressional proclamation declaring May 1986 as Better Hearing and Speech Month
  • In May 2004, the US Congress introduced a resolution declaring May as National Hearing and Speech Month
Other Newsworthy Notes

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